Les Misérables and the Bible

Reconciling God’s attribute of Justice with Mercy.

Les Misérables by Victor Hugo, first published in 1862, is widely considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. Adapted to the stage as a musical, it became a global sensation in the 1980s, and is now an epic motion picture generating Oscar buzz.

It is a profoundly moving story that deals with some of the most universally relevant tribulations of mankind. But what I find most fascinating is that in his French preface, Philosophie, Commencement d'un livre, Victor Hugo revealed that he originally intended Les Misérables as a religious book.

Of all the themes to be found in this incredible work, there is one that comes to grips with a fundamental question every one of us who aspires to live life honestly and ethically must encounter. It revolves around how best to resolve the conflict between mercy and justice.

Jean Valjean and Inspector Javert, the two chief protagonists of Les Misérables, arelocked in lifelong battle. By the strict standard of law, Jean Valjean, the hero, is a criminal. He stole a loaf of bread to feed his starving family. For this crime he is imprisoned for nine years and subsequently forced to carry a yellow badge identifying him as former convict – something that resonates with post-Holocaust Jewry far more than Victor Hugo could ever have imagined.

His nemesis, Inspector Javert, is the ostensible defender of law and order. Remarkably, Javert has no first name. A first name is personal. It defines us as individuals. It grants us our uniqueness. It is the key to our friendship and closeness with others. But Javert is too cold, too formal, too officious to be acknowledged with a first name. He is simply not sufficiently human to deserve it.

Inspector Javert is law without feeling. He seeks only blind justice. He refuses to admit the possibility of repentance. He is obsessed with re-arresting Jean Valjean in spite of his complete rehabilitation. He sees himself as saintly because he dedicates his life to punishing sinners. In his fixation with sin he loses sight of the possibility for salvation.

Victor Hugo conveys a truth that Jewish theologians believe is expressed in the two chief biblical names of God.

The genius of Victor Hugo was to allow us, by way of the novel’s ability to personalize two conflicting ideologies, to grasp a truth that Jewish theologians believe is expressed in the two chief biblical names of God.

The opening verse of the Torah tells us, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” The Divine name that is used, Elokim (transliterated with the letter “k” instead of “h” so as not to needlessly write His holy name) is synonymous with God as Ruler. It refers to the Heavenly attribute of Justice, midat ha-din. It is the God who created laws of nature – laws unbending and indifferent to specific preferences of people.

Yet, as Rashi’s commentary explains (Genesis 1:1):

It does not say “of the Lord’s creation of” for in the beginning it was His intention to create it with the Divine Standard of Justice, but he perceived that the world would not endure; so He preceded it with the Divine Standard of Mercy, allying it with the Divine Standard of Justice, and that is the reason it is written in chapter 2:4:“on the day the Lord God made earth and heaven.”

God solely as judge is an impossibility. God has another name. To deal with the world, He must also be the Lord – the four letter name of God known as the Tetragrammaton (Ado – nay). That name is the midat ha-rachamim, the attribute of compassion and mercy.God rules with justice; the Lord tempers it with mercy. One without the other betrays the essence of the harmonious heavenly spirit.

This duality of God has tremendous importance for us. We are meant to imitate Him; His attributes are to be ours. The way He acts is the way we must act. We must learn to find the correct balance between law and love, between rigid detachment and empathetic compassion.

Jewish law is a system that mightily strives to merge these two Divine traits. It asks much of us, but it also offers the means to repentance and pardon. It teaches that “in a place where baalei t’shuvah, repentant sinners, stand, even the most righteous are unworthy of standing.”

Sin has consequences, crime has punishment. But penitence is always possible. Forgiveness is to be granted to those who have overcome their failings.

Without a heart, justice is blind – and blind justice is ultimately no less than unjust.

Those like Jean Valjean dare not be pursued and persecuted for crimes committed in a distant past, for sins long since atoned. Inspector Javert is the paradigm of those who would pervert the purpose of law from rehabilitation to simple revenge. Without a heart, justice is blind – and blind justice is ultimately no less than unjust.

Victor Hugo found a powerful way to illustrate this very point. Jean Valjean saves the life of his arch-enemy, Javert, placing him in a profound moral dilemma. In emotional turmoil, Javert’s mind simply cannot reconcile the image he had carried through the years of Valjean as a brutal ex-convict with his acts of kindness on the barricades. His lifelong commitment to strict justice will not allow him to let Valjean go free. Yet he knows that if he were to arrest him he would be acting lawfully but not morally. For the first time in his life, Javert is faced with the situation where he must decide between the two.

Unable to find a solution to this dilemma, and horrified at the sudden realization that Valjean’s past no longer deserved cruel punishment in the present, Javert's entire system of moral values is shattered.

Javert could not make peace with the dissonance between his lifelong commitment to strict law and his newfound understanding of the requirement for compassion. In Jewish terms we might say Javert had only understood the concept of God as Justice but never learned the need to also worship the ideals of the Lord Who embodies Mercy.

Javert found only one solution for his dilemma. Not knowing whether to prioritize justice or mercy, Javert drowned himself in the river Seine.

How remarkable that Les Misérables comes to the same conclusion recorded by Rashi in his comment on the first verse of the Torah. The world cannot exist solely with justice without mercy – and those who attempt it will lose even their will to survive.

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About the Author

Rabbi Benjamin Blech, a frequent contributor to Aish, is a Professor of Talmud at Yeshiva University and an internationally recognized educator, religious leader, and lecturer. Author of 14 highly acclaimed books with combined sales of over a half million copies, his newest, The World From A Spiritual Perspective, is a collection of over 100 of his best Aish articles. See his website at www.benjaminblech.com.

Visitor Comments: 29

(19)
Sam,
March 12, 2013 7:14 PM

some factual notes

Valjean was sentenced 5 years for breaking a window and stealing bread. He made several attempts to escape from Toulon prison and ended up spending 19 years there as a result, not 9. Javert's pursuit of Valjean was primarily because Valjean broke parole and had been previously deemed "dangerous" by the courts, as his yellow ticket indicated, not because of the bread.

This article is interesting and brings up some good points but the author's understanding seems a bit shallow - especially of Javert who is not really a "villain" in the story, as the Thenardiers are, he is merely a counterpoint and adversary to Valjean - Javert & Valjean were both based on a single actual person - a reformed criminal-turned-police inspector named Vidocq.

The two characters are essentially one character, split into two parts.

It is also no accident that Javert leaped from a bridge between Notre Dame and the Palais de Justice - right in the *center* of Mercy & Justice. He had let Valjean go (in the book he hired a fiacre and went with Valjean & Marius for the trip!!) and made the first tentative steps toward the path of mercy, but it destroyed him in the process. There is a final letter he wrote which is in the novel but not the film, where he essentially hands in his resignation both to the police & to God. He knew he could not let Valjean go according to the law, but also knew that Valjean deserved his life & freedom, so he destroyed himself to allow the other to live.

Of course, Valjean's death is no less tragic (in the novel he essentially pines away and allows himself to starve to death after being separated from Cosette because he believes she is better off without him there). Valjean shows a lot of mercy toward others but very little toward himself, it should be noted. In some ways he is as morally rigid as Javert. Both fit the title of "Les Miserables" certainly.

Read the novel! It's long, but very good.

Diane,
April 12, 2013 4:55 PM

Thank you, Sam

I appreciate your comments and insights, Sam. I am 33% of my way through this most remarkable piece of exquisite literature and am very much enjoying my journey. I agree with you that people should be encouraged to read this book and not be daunted by its size. It is very readable and written in such a way that even those of us not used to reading literature of this calibre can put down and pick up the story easily. I have never read anything like this before in my life.

(18)
William,
January 1, 2013 11:04 PM

Les Miserables

The film? A musical version? Great to see and hear, but how many of you had read the book? I had read this tome the first time in my early teens (I am in the my 60's now) and I can recall only a handfull of books that I've read with such interest. "Read the book first, then go to see the picture", was my comment to one of my relatives, recently. We have seen the stage production some years back and we'll see the newest version, the musical, but nothing will replace the words spoken in the BOOK. Along with Alexander Dumas, Victor Hugo is my favourite author of the 19th century. And so they should be!

(17)
William,
December 31, 2012 8:59 PM

Excellant Commentary

Thank you for your outstanding commentary on Le Miserables. Very enligtening...showing the He is both Justice and Mercy. Saw the movie and I have to say it is one of the best movies I have ever seen. The story itself is moving but the portrayal of the characters and the message of the story moved me greatly even though I am quite familiar with the story. Thank you again for your article!

(16)
Anonymous,
December 28, 2012 5:07 AM

Les Miserables lu en francais il y a 45 ans

As part of my degree in Romance Languages, I had an entire class on "Les Miserables." Your insightful article provided an excellent summary of part of Hugo's raison d'ecrire. There was also a great deal of social commentary on life in France at the time. Here we are 45 years later with a wonderful musical movie of "Les Miserables," something I would have never conceived of 45 years ago. I told my friends its the equivalent of "The Dirty Dozen-the Musical." (OK-I loved the stage version of the musical, and my wife and I are headed out tomorrow to catch the movie.)

(15)
Penina,
December 27, 2012 2:10 PM

G-d is Non-dual

With all due respect to Rabbi Blech, who is certainly more learned and accomplished than I am, please be very careful when describing our interaction with G-d. As Rabbi David Aaron of Isralight explains, when we say in the Shema that G-d is One, we are not saying that He is a One, and then there is a two and a three etc. There is just One. We are saying that that He is Non-dual, even though in this world we experience Him in dual way. There is no division and no competition.There is nothing and no one else. Just Him. Everything we can perceive is within Him. How He interacts with us is perceived by us as dual, b/c of our own human limitations. When we recite the Shema we cover our eyes to demonstrate this idea; that our human eyes cannot see His oneness in this world, we proclaim His oneness despite what our eyes see. In His wisdom, which is beyond the constraints of time and space, his justice is mercy, and his mercy is justice. In reality there is no duality, no plurality, no conflict. Only His oneness.

Annon,
January 22, 2013 10:09 AM

The author never suggested that God is not one, merely that he has different names that represent His different middos (character traits).

Anonymous,
January 23, 2013 9:11 PM

G-d is one

Thank you! I agree fully! I don't think the article was saying that G-d is not one... But it is important for each of us, on a personal level, to get the correct perspective. G-d is one - no matter where and what is going on in our life! Thank you for emphasisng. Also, I never knew that that is the reason for why we cover our eyes when saying shema!

(14)
Dennis,
December 27, 2012 4:40 AM

Bravo on your excellent torah analysis

I just saw the movie. One of the best I ever saw. Viewers should read your comments before seeing the movie. It puts it in perspective.
Thank you

(13)
Barbara,
December 27, 2012 3:18 AM

Other religious themes

Yasha Choach! All you said resonates with me. But there's more religious themes in this: One is that of love--if you love another person you live fully (that is our purpose as humans--to love unconditionally); another is questioning who we are in relation to G-d--in other words humility.

(12)
Bill,
December 27, 2012 12:00 AM

Other applications

An excellent and timely discourse. Could the Valjean/Javert story be applied to Nazi hunters today?

Penina,
December 27, 2012 2:21 PM

Nazi Hunters are not Inspector Javert

If Javert is not given a name b/c "he is not human enough to deserve one", can the same be said of Nazi Hunters? Have "former" Nazis been "completely rehabilitated"? Any regret or remorse on their part? Have any that are hunted asked for forgiveness? Have we the right not to pursue justice? Are we not obligated to show mercy and compassion to the Jewish people, whose blood must not be seen as cheap to the wolves that surround us to this very day? Mercy on those who do not deserve it, is a lack of mercy on those who do deserve it.

(11)
howard yagerman,
December 26, 2012 2:45 PM

BRILLIANT

Yasha Choach.Your review and insight are brilliant.The explanation of the tension between justice and mercy is a beautiful and thoughtful balance of the building blocks of life.You have served the everlasting proud.

(10)
Nechama,
December 26, 2012 6:53 AM

Great Article.Great Comments. Grateful for both,BH!

BH
Ahavah raba,BH! Superbly written with extraordinary insight. Articulated well the 'meaning' of Hugo's masterpiece,BH. Our HaShem's 'divine' Chumash,that was given as a 'wonder'ful gift,is eloquently explained, BH!, too! BH! Love Chumash! Hugo's book,too. One should read it in French as one must read Chumash in the original language. I will add this article to my 'keep' list,BH! Just sign me, 'forever grateful'!

(9)
Janice Klinger,
December 26, 2012 6:19 AM

Justice

I found your article to be quite interesting. But I must disagree with you about God's mercy. How merciful is God for punishing humanity for the disobedience of Adam and Eve, for Sodom and Gomorrah, for the Flood...

(8)
Avi Keslinger,
December 26, 2012 6:09 AM

mercy in court

Only the Heavenly Court can show mercy. A human court may no (Mishna Ketubot 9:2). What Jean Valjean did was correct but only if he was willing to pay at a later time (Shulchan Aruch Choshen Mishpat 359:4).

Margarita,
December 26, 2012 12:18 PM

thank you

B"H Avi, thank you for writing what i think is the correct attitude. although the book shows many shades of the story, the truth is much more simple - crime should be punished.
my lesson from the book is different - we should feed hungry for many of the people in need are decent people and would do the right thing once out of the bad situation.

Raphaelle Do Lern Hwei,
January 9, 2013 7:26 AM

A Human Court Is Expected to be Fair to All

All are equal under the Law. Unfortunately, Inspector Javert does not think so. Why? I do not know if Aish.com will publish my comments about Jean Valjean : he is Jewish. That explains why he was not happy about Marius dating his beloved adopted daughter Cossette initially. He gives her the freedom to choose her own life eventually.
Victor Hugo portrays Jews in a better light than Charles Dickens, who lived in the same time. Fagins, in Oliver Twist the life long career thief is also Jewish. People during that time tend to stereotype Jews as embezzlers and cut throats who will do anything for money.

(7)
Selma Soss,
December 26, 2012 5:19 AM

Beautiful story. Makes me grateful for my
judaism.

(6)
Anonymous,
December 26, 2012 4:06 AM

The holocaust

Would similar thoughts and principals apply to Nazis who repented ?

(5)
Marilyn Selber,
December 26, 2012 3:58 AM

Was Jean Val Jean a rehabilitated "sinner?"

I enjoyed the fine article. One question: It is my impression that Victor Hugo was railing against a corrupt system of justice that would imprison a person for stealing bread to feed his starving nephew. We understand that the owner of the bread would have to be recompensed for its value, but would we call Jean ValJean a sinner for what he did?

(4)
Sharon,
December 24, 2012 9:05 PM

the lack of social justice was the real evil

From the start, Valjean's crime was the right thing to do in the given situation. A society that allows people to starve is not employing justice when someone steals to save his sister's children. So the opposing forces are not justice vs. mercy, but hard-heartedness vs. compassion.

(3)
sharona,
December 24, 2012 12:51 AM

It's also important to remember Hashem's mercy when working on ourselves, every effort counts. We might fall sometimes and then become discouraged. But we should rememeber that we can always stand back up. Hashem appreciates every effort we make

(2)
Sara,
December 23, 2012 6:45 PM

Justice and Mercy should go hand in hand.

This is one of the reasons why I don't believe in the death penality. When a person sits in jail this sometimes allow a person to temper justice with mercy. He gets a chance to think about what he has done and has a chance to change. There are different reasons a person commits a crime. Mental illness, starvation, poverty, drugs or greed. All should be given a chance to change. So many crimes are done when people are in their youth and sometimes with proper guidance.

Anonymous,
December 25, 2012 10:18 PM

Most people commit murder out of evil . The death penalty discourages evil people from killing another. If someone kills my child, I would not want him alive, to even be able to visit with his family behind bars. If there is a GD, the sinner will repent with his life, and maybe even go to hell.

David,
December 26, 2012 12:02 AM

and yet...

The person who kills another has taken away another person's entire future, including chances to repent or grow. Mercy has its place, but not to the point of disregarding justice!

(1)
Anonymous,
December 23, 2012 12:48 PM

Another parallel

Similarly, ahavas yisrael will not exist if people are so obsessed with their interpretation of the*letter* of the Law, at the expense of partnership with the *spirit* of the Law.

Janice K.,
December 26, 2012 6:18 AM

Letter of the Law

Hashem sure subscribed to the letter of the law many, many times.

Chaya,
January 22, 2013 3:22 PM

Letter and Spirit Cannot Be Truly Divided

Any real deviation from the Law surely offends the spirit of the law, as well. That is why we have Talmudic scholars to research and elucidate what comprises an actual deviation.

I'm told that it's a mitzvah to become intoxicated on Purim. This puzzles me, because to my understanding, it is not considered a good thing to become intoxicated, period.

One of the characteristics of the at-risk youth is their use of drugs, including alcohol. In my experience, getting drunk doesn't reveal secrets. It makes people act stupid and irresponsible, doing things they would never do if they were sober. Also, I know a lot about the horrible health effects of abusing alcohol, because I work at a research center that focuses on addiction and substance abuse.

Also, I am an alcoholic, which means that if I drink, very bad things happen. I have not had a drink in 22 years, and I have no intention of starting now. Surely there must be instances where a person is excused from the obligation to drink. I don't see how Judaism could ever promote the idea of getting drunk. It just doesn't seem right.

The Aish Rabbi Replies:

Putting aside for a moment all the spiritual and philosophical reasons for getting drunk on Purim, this remains an issue of common sense. Of course, teenagers should be warned of the dangers of acute alcohol ingestion. Of course, nobody should drink and drive. Of course, nobody should become so drunk to the point of negligence in performing mitzvot. And of course, a recovering alcoholic should not partake of alcohol on Purim.

Indeed, the Code of Jewish Law explicitly says that if one suspects the drinking may affect him negatively, then he should NOT drink.

Getting drunk on Purim is actually one of the most difficult mitzvot to do correctly. A person should only drink if it will lead to positive spiritual results - e.g. under the loosening affect of the alcohol, greater awareness will surface of the love for God and Torah found deep in the heart. (Perhaps if we were on a higher spiritual level, we wouldn't need to get drunk!)

Yet the Talmud still speaks of an obligation on Purim of "not knowing the difference between Blessed is Mordechai and Cursed is Haman." How then should a person who doesn't drink get the point of “not knowing”? Simple - just go to sleep! (Rama - OC 695:2)

All this applies to individuals. But the question remains - does drinking on Purim adversely affect the collective social health of the Jewish community?

The aversion to alcoholism is engrained into Jewish consciousness from a number of Biblical and Talmudic sources. There are the rebuking words of prophets - Isaiah 28:1, Hosea 3:1 with Rashi, and Amos 6:6, and the Zohar says that "The wicked stray after wine" (Midrash Ne'alam Parshat Vayera).

It is well known that the rate of alcoholism among Jews has historically been very low. Numerous medical, psychological and sociological studies have confirmed this. The connection between Judaism and sobriety is so evident, that the following conversation is reported by Lawrence Kelemen in "Permission to Receive":

When Dr. Mark Keller, editor of the Quarterly Journal of Studies on Alcohol, commented that "practically all Jews do drink, and yet all the world knows that Jews hardly ever become alcoholics," his colleague, Dr. Howard Haggard, director of Yale's Laboratory of Applied Physiology, jokingly proposed converting alcoholics to the Jewish religion in order to immerse them in a culture with healthy attitudes toward drinking!

Perhaps we could suggest that it is precisely because of the use of alcohol in traditional ceremonies (Kiddush, Bris, Purim, etc.), that Jews experience such low rates of alcoholism. This ceremonial usage may actually act like an inoculation - i.e. injecting a safe amount that keeps the disease away.

Of course, as we said earlier, all this needs to be monitored with good common sense. Yet in my personal experience - having been in the company of Torah scholars who were totally drunk on Purim - they acted with extreme gentleness and joy. Amid the Jewish songs and beautiful words of Torah, every year the event is, for me, very special.

Adar 12 marks the dedication of Herod's renovations on the second Holy Temple in Jerusalem in 11 BCE. Herod was king of Judea in the first century BCE who constructed grand projects like the fortresses at Masada and Herodium, the city of Caesarea, and fortifications around the old city of Jerusalem. The most ambitious of Herod's projects was the re-building of the Temple, which was in disrepair after standing over 300 years. Herod's renovations included a huge man-made platform that remains today the largest man-made platform in the world. It took 10,000 men 10 years just to build the retaining walls around the Temple Mount; the Western Wall that we know today is part of that retaining wall. The Temple itself was a phenomenal site, covered in gold and marble. As the Talmud says, "He who has not seen Herod's building, has never in his life seen a truly grand building."

Some people gauge the value of themselves by what they own. But in reality, the entire concept of ownership of possessions is based on an illusion. When you obtain a material object, it does not become part of you. Ownership is merely your right to use specific objects whenever you wish.

How unfortunate is the person who has an ambition to cleave to something impossible to cleave to! Such a person will not obtain what he desires and will experience suffering.

Fortunate is the person whose ambition it is to acquire personal growth that is independent of external factors. Such a person will lead a happy and rewarding life.

With exercising patience you could have saved yourself 400 zuzim (Berachos 20a).

This Talmudic proverb arose from a case where someone was fined 400 zuzim because he acted in undue haste and insulted some one.

I was once pulling into a parking lot. Since I was a bit late for an important appointment, I was terribly annoyed that the lead car in the procession was creeping at a snail's pace. The driver immediately in front of me was showing his impatience by sounding his horn. In my aggravation, I wanted to join him, but I saw no real purpose in adding to the cacophony.

When the lead driver finally pulled into a parking space, I saw a wheelchair symbol on his rear license plate. He was handicapped and was obviously in need of the nearest parking space. I felt bad that I had harbored such hostile feelings about him, but was gratified that I had not sounded my horn, because then I would really have felt guilty for my lack of consideration.

This incident has helped me to delay my reactions to other frustrating situations until I have more time to evaluate all the circumstances. My motives do not stem from lofty principles, but from my desire to avoid having to feel guilt and remorse for having been foolish or inconsiderate.

Today I shall...

try to withhold impulsive reaction, bearing in mind that a hasty act performed without full knowledge of all the circumstances may cause me much distress.

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